Rail joint and splice



Dec. 18, 1923. wmwl J. WHITE RAIL JOINT AND SPLICE Filed June 23-, 1925 and claimed.

Patented Dec, id, 1923.

start;

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that 1', JOHN VVHrrn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Houston, in the county of Harris and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail Joints and Spliceabfwhich the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

The purposeof the present invention is to provide an improved rail joint and splice, wherein the webs of the adjacent ends of rail sections have interengaging recesses and tongues and cooperating shoulders, to not only prevent relative lateral movement of the connected ends of the rail section, but also preventing relative longitudinal movement thereof excessively.

Another purpose is the provision of a device of this kind, wherein the recesses and tongues have elongated slots for the reception of bolts, the greater portions of the shanks of which are fiat or rectangular in cross section to prevent turning, and due to the elongation of the slots, the rails are permitted to expand and contract, due to the heat and cold,

In using a rail joint of this character, it is necessary at times to use rails which are not provided with the cooperating recesses and tongues, in other words it is necessary to utilize filler railsections, in order to provide a track without any breaks there-in.

Therefore, it is the purpose to provide splice rail sections which have their adjacent ends provided with a rail joint construction of the character heretofore mentioned, together with spaced extension webs upon the remote ends of the splice rail sections, to be bolted to the webs of the rails which are to be spliced and joined, in order to provide a continuoustrack.

It is to be understood that the particulars herein given are in no way limitative and that while still keeping within the scopeofthe invention, any desired modifications of detail and desired proportions may be made in the apparatus according to circumstances.

i The invention comprises further features and combination of parts, as will be here- 'inafter set forth, shown in the drawings noos'ron, Taxes.

AND SPLICE.

1923. Serial N0. 647,283.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a view in perspective showing the improved rail joint constructed in accordance with the invention and applied to the adjacent ends of a pair of rails;

Figure 2 discloses perspective views of the adjacent ends of the rail sections, illustrating the interengaging recesses and tongues, whereby the two rail sections may be united;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view on line 3-8 of Figure 1;

Figure 4: is atransverse sectional view on line 44 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional view on line 55 of Figure 1;

Figure 6 is a detail perspective view of one splice rail section;

Figure 7 is a detail perspective view of another splice rail section.

Referring to the drawings, 1 and 2 designate two adjoining rails. The rail 1 has its base cut away as at 8, and its web a adjacent where the cut away portion of the base occurs is provided with an enlargement 5, which extends from a point as 'in dicated at 6 to the end of the rail as at 7. In otherwords the origin of the enlargement is offset from adjacent where the base is cutaway, so as to act as a reinforcement for the web and the ball or head of the rail.

The enlargement 5 at the end of the rail is recessed vertically as shown at 8, where as the enlargement between where the cut away portion of the base originates at 8 and adjacent where the recess 8 is located, has a restricted portion or tongue 9.

The rail section 2 also has an enlarge ment 10 formed on its web, and in this in stance the head or ball of the rail is cut away as shown, thereby causing a shoulder 11 to be formed. In other words the base of one rail is cut away while the head or ball of the other rail is cut away, so that the adjacent ends of the rail sections may overlap; In fact the ball or head of one rail, due to this construction, may overlie the other rail, so as to provide a continuous track rail. The enlargement 10 of the rail section 2 is providedwith a recess or bifurcation 12, which is open at its end and top,

- and when the two rail sections are united the recess 12 receives the tongue 9, while the recess 8 receives the tongue 13, which is caused to be formed by reducing or restricting the enlargement 10 at a point be tween the walls of the recess 12 and the shoulder 11. The enlargement 10 of the rail section 2 has a recess or opening 14, which receives the portion 15 of the en largement 5, that is the portion 15 between the walls of the recess 8 and one end of the tongue 9. It will be noted that the recess or cut away portion 14 is larger than the portion 15, thereby permitting movement of said portion when the two rail sections are united. The walls of the recesses 8 and 12 andthe tongues 9 and 13 have slots 16 and 17 for the reception of bolts 18. The shanks of these bolts are fiat or rectangular in cross sections, so as to prevent the shanks from turning in the slots 16 and 17 However the rectangular portions of the shanks ofsaid bolts 18 are shorter than the slots 16 and 17, which will permit the rail sections to expand and contract due to the temperature of the weather. The rectangular portions of the shanks of the bolts 18 have threaded extensions 19, and carry washers and nuts 20 and 21, to hold the bolts in place. Obviously the bolt would not turn in the slots, and due to the elongation of the slots and the size of the recess or cut away portion 14:, the adjacent ends of the-rail sections are capable of expanding and contracting due to the temperature.

In Figures 6 and 7 there are disclosed what may be termed as splice rail sect-ions 26and 27, the construction of the joint between whichis identical. withthe construc tion of the joint between the rail sections inFigures 1 and 2. However, these splice rail sections 26 and 27 have spaced tongues 24 and 23, the fiormer being provided with openings or apertures 25, whereas the latter are provided with openings 23. These spaced tongues form integral parts with the thickened web portions of the splice rail sections, and as previously stated are spaced sufficiently or substantially equal to the thicknesses of the webs of rail sections which are not provided with a rail joint as in Figures 1 and2. In this case the spaces between the tongues 24 and 23 receive such webs, there being bolts (not shown) to engage through the openings 25 and 23 and through said webs, to hold the splicerail sections securely to the rail sections; With these splice rail sections, it is possible to use ordinary rails, to fill in gaps or spaces between rail sections, which cannot be filled in with by means of standard lengths of rails. In-other words by utilizing sections of ordinary rails, the tongues 24- and 28 may be bolted to their webs and held in place between other rail sections to provide continuous track rails.

The invention having been set forth, what is claimed is r 1'. Ina rail joint, the combination with the adjacent ends of a pair of rail sections, the extremities of said rail sections having recesses adapted to receive tongues corresponding in thicknesses to the width of the recesses and offset thereto, the base of one rail and the head of the other rail being cut away, whereby the rail sections may overlap, thereby permitting the recesses and tongues to interengage, and means passing through the rail sections where the tongues and recesses interengage for fastening the recesses together, one rail section having a cut away portion between its respective tongue and recess, for the reception of a thickened portion between the tongue and recess of the other rail section.

2. A rail joint, comprising the adjacent ends of a pair of rail sections, said ends having extremities provided with enlargements, the extremities of the enlargements having recesses, said enlargements having reduced tongues coextensive with the recesses and in alignment therewith, the base of one rail section and the ball of the other rail section being cut away permitting the two rail sections tooverlap, whereby the tongues may assume positions coincident with the recesses and engaged there with, the walls otthe recesses and tongues having elongated slots, and means passing through the slotsto unite the rail section.

3. A rail joint, .comprising the adjacent ends ofa pair of rail sections, said ends having extremities provided with enlargements, the extremities'of the enlargements having recesses, said enlargements having reduced tongues coextensive with therecesses and in alignment therewith, the base of 'onerail section and the ballot the other rail section being cut away permitting the two rail sections to overlap, whereby the tongues may assume positions coincidentwith the recesses and engaged therewith, the walls of the recesses and tongues having elongated slots, and means passingthrough the slots to unite the rail section, said slots constituting means to permit the rail sectionsto expand and contract, the tonguejand the recess of one ,rail section being spaced causing to be formed a vertical recess for the reception of a por tion of the other rail section, whereby said tongues and recesses may interengage.

4. A rail joint, comprising theadjac ent ends of a pair of splice rail sections, said ends having extremitles provided with enlargements, the extremities of the enlargements having recesses, said enlargements.

having reduced tongues coextensive with the recesses and in alignment therewith, the base of one splice rail section and the bell of the other splice rail section being cut away permitting the two splice rail sections to overlap, whereby the tongues may assume positions coincident with the recesses and engagecl therewith, the walls or" the recesses and tongues having elongated slots, and means passing through the slots to unite the splice rail sections, the remote ends of the splice rail sections having spaced tongues coextensive with the webs of the splice rail sections and adapted to receive and be secured to the webs of two adjoining rails to he spliced.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature.

JOHN WHITE. 

